42 POZ APRIL/MAY 2015 poz.com
(BUTTERFLY GIRL) COURTESY OF ERIC RHEIN; (OTHERS) BILL WADMAN
specifically chosen for its rich metaphorical meanings. Even though, for him, many of these symbols come intuitively, he later considers their multiple connections to his experiences. Take Rhein’s hummingbirds: The Aztecs believed that hummingbirds were reincarnations of warriors; a hummingbird’s weight at 21 grams is equal to the weight the human body is believed to lose immediately after death; more simply, there’s a connection to his mother’s hummingbird feeder. His most frequently used symbol, though, must be the leaf, and Rhein’s most iconic and poignant artwork is perhaps his ongoing Leaves piece. It’s an overwhelming collection of portraits of friends, lovers and other important figures who passed away from AIDS complications—each portrait done as a wire outline of a unique leaf. Started in 1996, Leaves has grown to over 200 individual leaf portraits, with the most recent completed in 2014. Rhein conceived of Leaves while at the MacDowell Colony, a prominent art colony in New Hampshire. It was autumn, and Rhein himself was experiencing a near-miraculous transformation back to health thanks to protease inhibitors, which have since rendered his viral load undetectable. Reflecting on that time, Rhein says, “Before, I wouldn’t have been able to go [to MacDowell] because I was so ill and deteriorated. I had four T-cells, I was 127 pounds and I had candidiasis in my bone marrow. By the time I got there—because I was fortunate to get into the study for the protease inhibitors— I had a really rapid return. I had transformed. I was in this state of bliss and light.” W hile collecting fallen leaves at the art colony, Rhein felt the presence of his late From The Course of My Life, loved ones surrounding him. clockwise from top: “The Girl He began tracing each leaf in Down Old Vanleuvan Road wire as a way to construct a (Butterfly Girl),” 1992–1995, steel, brass & gold-filled wire, permanent personal memorifound objects, thread & glue; “R.O.T.C.,” 1987, wire, suede, al to those who died. He conleather, brocade fabric, found tinues the process to this day, objects; “Hummingbird #16– Flying West,” 2014, wire & paper titling each leaf with the person’s first name and “some poetic reference or attribute.” Leaves includes “Mysterious Robert,” for photographer Robert Mapplethorpe; “Fair Pam,” for a fellow support group member at Friends In Deed; and “Life Altering Spencer,” for activist Spencer Cox. Leaves ranges from world-famous names to lesser-known individuals who were influential in Rhein’s life. “In keeping with my desire to have the piece as an egalitarian presentation,” Rhein says, “I don’t single out noted people from people who were making differences in their lives in ways [that won’t be recorded] on a Wikipedia page.” Nonetheless, his wire portraits will no doubt gain more renown, as Leaves will be featured in the anticipated national exhibition Art AIDS America traveling later this